Early on in Soulstice you’ll meet Layton, a member of the religious order that has sent you on your mission. As an ‘observer’, he’s supposed to assist protagonist Briar as she heads towards a great tear in the sky that’s corrupting the city of Ilden. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have much faith in the novice warrior – she’s a pretender merely wearing the armour of the elite ashen knights, he believes, and her inexperience will see her fail. Of course, as the hero of the story, Briar will prove him wrong. But when it comes to Soulstice itself, Layton’s concerns feel more prescient. While this action game wields the weapons of accomplished genre-mates, it rarely convinces that it knows how to use them.
